Shoe holding and stretching device



March 1, 1960 L A. LEVINE SHOE HOLDING AND STRETCHING DEVICE L Filed Aug. 16, 1956 g; I

2 Sheets-Sheet l FIG. 2

uvwruron IR Vl/VG A. LE VINE A TTOR/VE'V March 1, 1960 LA. LEVINE 2,926,368

SHOE HOLDING AND smmcuma DEVICE Filed Aug. 16, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3 FIG. 4

FIG. 6

INVENTOR IR V/NG A. L E VINE BY Y.

ATTORNEY United States Patent SHOE HOLDING AND STRETCI-IING DEVICE Irving A. Levine, Woodmere, N.Y.

Application August 16, 1956, Serial No. 604,449

1 Claim. (Cl. 12-533) This invention relates to shoe supporting means and more specifically, although in its broader aspects not exclusively, to devices for holding shoes and the like in position while cleaning or applying polish to them.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide improved supporting means for boots and shoes.

For many, many years, men (and, more recently, women too) have cleaned and polished their own boots and shoes. Some of the younger and more agile mem bers of the human family find no difiiculty in putting their feet up (one at a time) on a raised supporting member and shining their shoes while wearing them. This arrangement, however, is not satisfactory for many people of more advanced years or those who find it not as convenient as in youth to bend nearly double to do a fine job of shoe shining. Some have even given up shining their own shoes for this reason and have resorted to professional shoe shining parlors.

Even for those still doing their own shoes, the shine is not as good as desired since a beter polish can be obtained when the shoes are not on the users feet. Handholding them is also not satisfactory to most people as dirt and polish are transferred to the hands and clothes. In the last few years, due partly to these reasons and also, no doubt, to the increased cost of a professional shoe shine, there has been an accelerating demand for shoe supporting devices of the type suitable for use in the home. Such a device would, of course, be entirely different from the stationary type used by shoe makers and professional bootblacks. Preferably it should be supported from a wall or door in such a way that it can be swung or tilted out of the way of trafiic when not in use. It should have a firm support for the toe and heel so that the polishing will not get the shoes out of shape. It should be readily and quickly adjustable to support several sizes of shoes and for holding all sizes firmly by a quick movement. It should, of course, be of pleasing appearance so that even though it is strictly a utilitarian device it will not seem out of place in a kitchen or other utility room in a home.

Such a device is provided in accordance with the present invention. In a preferred and exemplary embodiment, the shoe holding fixture comprises a wall bracket to which is attached in rotatable manner an outwardthrusting and downwardly curved toe-supporting member to which is pivotally attached to project from the underside thereof a downwardly-and-inwardly projecting heel supporting member. By means of an almost completely concealed spring (to obviate unnecessary wear and tear on the spring and to prevent dust reaching it since it is difficult to clean springs without removing them from their usual operating position), the toe and heel members are forced apart from one another to give a firm support for the shoe. Moreover, by means of one or more pins or the equivalent, an appropriate, removable, shaped toe piece can be quickly applied or removed from the toe-supporting member. If desired, a plurality of such shaped toe pieces can .be furnished with each shoe sup- 2,926,368 Patented Mar. 1, 1960 porting device of this invention so as to provide good support for men, women and childrens shoes.

The invention will be more readily understood by referring to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view, with portions broken away and others in section, of a mounted shoe holding fixture in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the arrangement of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side view of a supporting bracket of the shoe-holding fixture of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a front view of the bracket shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken in a plane through line 5-5 of the arrangement of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken in a plane through line 6-6 of the arrangement shown in Fig. 4.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, Fig. 1 shows, by way of example for purposes of illustration, a shoe holding fixture 10 in accordance with the invention which is adapted to be permanently but rotatably mounted on a wall or door 11. While the fixture 10 is primarily intended for use in the home for supporting shoes in a firm position while shining them, it will be obvious that it can be used as a support while replacing shoe strings, making minor repairs and the like.

The fixture 10 comprises a bracket member 12, a first shoe supporting member 13, a second shoe supporting member 14, a spring 15 for biasing the remote ends of the two supporting members away from one another, a lever 16 for locking the supporting members in position, and a removable toe piece 17 fastened to the end of the support member 13.

The bracket 12 is arranged to rotatably support the rest of the fixture 10. It comprises (also see Figs. 3 and 4) a back member 20 adapted to be secured to the wall and pivot-receiving members 21 and 22 projecting therefrom and adapted to support a pivot 23 about which the supporting member 13 is free to rotate. The near end of the member 13 is provided with a small well 24 and is also provided with a projection 26 on the under side thereof for engagement with one of the three grooves or holes 27 in the member 22. By raising the member 13, the projection 26 is removed from its groove 27 and can be rotated to any one of the other grooves as desired. The grooves 27 are positioned so that the fixture 10 can be positioned either fiat against the wall or projecting therefrom.

A very important feature of the present invention is the position of the spring 15. This spring is preferably mounted entirely, or almost entirely, within a channel 28 in the underside of the supporting member 13. This prevents accidentally snagging the spring with the hands, shoe or other implement (thereby weakening it) or the accumulation of dust or kitchen grease thereon. The spring 15 is connected between the supporting member 14 and a projecting pin or peg 31 of the supporting member 13 in channel 28 therein.

In utilizing the fixture 10, the ends of the members 13 and 14 are grasped and pulled somewhat together so that they can be inserted in the shoe. On releasing them, the spring 15 will cause the member 14 to butt against the rear portion of the shoe, thereby holding the shoe in position in the fixture for shining or other purposes. By turning the lever 16, screw pressure can be applied to secure, as in a vise, the member 13 in position between two portions of member 14 (see Fig. 5).

In order to adapt the fixture 10 for a variety of different sizes and shapes of shoes, a plurality of toe-pieces 17 can be provided. They can be held in position by any suitable means, such as by pins 29 adapted to fit into holes 30 in the supporting member 13. f

It is obvious that many changes can be made in the embodiment described above without departing from the spirit of the invention, as indicated in'the claim What is claimed is:

Ashoe holding and stretchingdeviceadapted to be supported from awall or similar member comprising a wall bracket member, a first shoe supportingv member attached tosaid bracket member, said supporting member beingoutwardly thrusting and, in a portion thereof remote from said wall, downwardly curvedand adapted to receive the front portion of a shoe, said first supporting member having a channel in the underside thereof and a downwardly projecting pin therein, a second shoe supporting member pivotally attached to said first supporting memberfrom a portion thereof between its ends, said second member having its upper portion in said channel and being downwardly-and-inwardly projecting beneath said first member to receive the heel of said shoe, spring means positioned completely in said channel-in the first supporting member and connected between said pin and said second supporting member at a point thereof within said channel, said spring being biased to spread the shoe receiving ends of said supporting members apart from one another, and locking means comprising a lever adjacent the pivot between said supporting members to lock them in position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 737,174 Title, Aug. 25, 1903 979,851 Hansen Dec. 27, 1910 1,859,536 Schulse May 24, 1932 2,235,066 Frazee Mar. 18, 1941 2,466,442 Kester Apr. 5, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 3,418 Great Britain of 1901 515,848 Great Britain Dec. 15, 1939 

